Opinion: Axelrod Lures Washed-Up Pols to U of C

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Old politicians never die; they just end up at the University of Chicago. Here’s the lineup for the spring quarter of David Axelrod’s new Institute of Politics, the first season of what’s sure to be many years of political war stories.

Former Mississippi governor and Republican National Committe chairman Haley Barbour "will reflect on 'What Washington Can Learn from State Governments.'"

Jon Favreau, a former speechwriter for President Obama, "will recount his speechwriting experiences in a series entitled 'Words Matter: Storytelling with President Obama in an Age of Sound Bites.'"

Former Colorado senator and 1980s presidential candidate Gary Hart, "a recognized authority on national security issues, will explore 'The Changing Nature of Security in a New Century.'"

Former Ohio Rep. Steven LaTourette, "an insightful and sometimes acerbic critic of the Congress in which he served, will cover 'The Politics of Debt and the Deficit of Trust in Washington.'"

Chris Lu, former Cabinet Secretary in the Obama White House, "will draw on his years in the West Wing and on Capitol Hill with a series called 'The Power of the Presidency in a Time of Political Gridlock.'"

Bethany McLean, a contributing editor to Vanity Fair, and co-author of All the Devils Are Here and The Smartest Guys in the Room: The Amazing Rise and Scandalous Fall of Enron, "will recall the financial crisis of 2008 and its aftermath in 'Covering the Calamity: The Financial Crisis, and How We Faced It,'"

If you’re a washed-up politician or journalist with plenty of old tales to tell, the Institute is taking applications for Fellows in the Fall 2013 quarter at politics.uchicago.edu/fellows.